Join The Mifan Mommy Club!

The Mifan Mommy Club is a virtual group of individuals who have banded together to support the children of China. We need you!

November 13, 2011

Win the Kay Bratt Giveaway of Karito Wan Ling!


You Can Win the Karito Wan Ling doll!

Just go to my new blog to find out how. Click HERE!

November 5, 2011

Mifan Mommy Club Update

While the Mifan Mama Club is still doing work in China, the US chapter will no longer be able to accept donations. If the Mifan Mama organization is successful in becoming a recognized 501c3 in the future, we will let you know and give you an avenue to help again.


We thank you for all of your generosity over the last few years, with you we were able to help feed many Chinese orphans.

February 28, 2010

Mifan Mommy Update Feb 2010

The January 2010 Mifan Mommy Report can be found posted on my new blog. You know you want to read it....go ahead, admit it.
Just click RIGHT HERE!
*Smile*

December 21, 2009

Mifan Mommy Update December 2009


Below please find the December report from our China volunteer, Julie. Thank you, American Mifan Mommies for all you do!

Short Report on the Anhui trip (Q&A)
From TLC
1. Who went ?
Angelina Chen (TLC staff), 2 TLC volunteers: Wang Chun Li and Lin Gui Jing


2 when was trip?
December 11-December 13, 2009


3. What was the purpose of the trip?
To make contact with the orphanage, hang out with the people, and make sure the Christmas gifts were delivered and handed out.


There was reports of possible snow, so the plan was changed, we decided to go by train, instead of hiring a van. Because of that,there were cancelations on some of the participants of the trip.


The trip allowed us to be here all day Saturday, meeting people and hanging out. We asked questions about the orphanage, the acting director, Guan and his wife, were very helpful in answering them. We were really touched by the way we were welcomed and received. We stayed at the guest room, the only room in the compound that had heat.


Among the things we got to do were games, pictures, good conversations, etc. Angelina got to teach some English songs to the kids. The 2 TLC volunteers wanted to see about getting the money for purchasing 2 dryers for the small children and patients.


The semi truck with the gifts arrived at about 7:45am on Sunday, the whole place was filled with excitement as gifts were being passed out to the individuals. There were also other donations like crocs shoes and other items. The directors and the staff really appreciate them.


*to those of you who wonder what the Mifan Mommy project is, we are a group of online contributors who give a small monthly donation to support a non-governmental orphanage in Anhui. The orphanage was started by an elderly Chinese man who converted his abandoned manufacturing facility into a home for the unwanted. They do not receive government assistance but instead rely on the generosity of those who have heard his story. But he is the true hero in the story, as he opened his heart to receive those who had no where else to go. For our part as the Mifan Mommies, donations of $9 a month are given to help buy rice, as we found out that one bag of rice to feed the whole institute is only $9, yet for many years the residents only received rice on special occasions. Now they get it all the time!

September 16, 2009

Sept 2009 Mifan Mommy Report

Here is the latest Mifan Mommy report from China-- just want to keep all you American Mifan Moms in the loop! Thank you so much for your support!

Dear All,Please find the report of the Mifan Mama meeting held on Tuesday 15th September.It has been another very positive meeting.

Thank you Julie, Coral Lee and Tony for spending Saturday afternoon at the Jinqiao sale....between cake mugs, torches and donations you have raised RMB 2240! Well done!
We have found the sponsors to send the first 4 children to school ! This is great news. Those of you in the mailing list please bring the money at next meeting, as Julie will be traveling to the Orphanage next weekend , and checking out the school on Monday 28th, and if everything looks ok we'll pay and the kids can start going to school in a couple of weeks. Also, while sitting at Starbucks, a lady recognized Julie and offered to help by sponsoring a child for school. It'll probably be the next group , maybe next semester. Thank you Jane.

The Giving Tree form is now with Laowang, they are filling it in with all the details required as well as a special wish that the children may have. It should be returned at the end of the week, I'll then forward it to you Charlene. Please note that height and weight fields are not going to be filled in, as it is too hard to measure for all those children.

Monica from TLC ( a group that works with orphanages), is working at the possibility to partner with Mifan Mama through purchasing rice and milk powder.

Katja from SAP has joined our meeting, bringing enthusiasm and new ideas:, she offered to a drop off point for rice and clothes, will be trying to organize different departments withing the company to sponsor schooling for children, suggested to contact big retailers like Carrefour, Metro, Ikea, etc to find out what do they do with damaged goods and if it is possible to recycle or sell them, also will be checking if there is a way to collect money back in Germany to be sent over for the orphanage.

I'll be meeting the flower arrangement teachers tomorrow, I already have Anne-Claire hosting one event in Puxi in November or December, please come forward if you wish to host one (you have to have capacity for 6 to 8 people, so probably 2 tables) and what are your preferred dates and times. Email me about it, please put FLOWER ARRANGEMENT in the subject line.

Coca Cola to sponsor the Orphanage with RMB 50000 for the next 3 years. Sangita is traveling to the Orphanage with 4 children and Julie by train on Friday night, 25th September . The children will then think of a way to help Laowang and work on this project. Also the children are keen to help us updating the website, for example by adding a shopping corner where we advertise and sell our cards, cups and the cookbook....maybe should be meeting with Heidi in the next couple of weeks to talk about what ideas they have and how we want it to look.

Good meeting with the cookbook sponsors: they will help with the design and want 45 RMB per book, which we can sell for 150 or 200 RMB. Sangita could you please confirm that your teacher is available to translate, so she can liaise with Marion.

Cards; Tomorrow Juie and I will be going to the printing company, to discuss the details. Another idea that was suggested is to use children drawings to make new cards. I'll ask the orphanage to get the kids to draw this week so when we go there at the end of the month we can collect the drawings.

Laowang sick children: Baobei's doctors are looking at the situation of the children in particular and asking questions to clarify their situation. It is work in progress.UPCOMING
We need to find out how many people are traveling to the orphanage BY BUS on 26th-27th September. At the moment there are people traveling by train, 2 private cars, and 1 person only going by bus. Please let us know asap.

[USA Mifan Mommies-- I know, I know...I wish we were going, too....]

June 29, 2009

Mifan Mommy Report June 2009

Mifan Mamas Volunteer’s Visit to Lao Wang’s Orphanage Anhui
June 27/28 2009
Report from China Volunteer



Thank You!

I would like to start by thanking YOU all for allowing us the privilege of passing on your gifts and love to Lao Wang’s children. Thank YOU for allowing us the privilege of delivering food to these needy children.

Thank you to Kay and all your supporters in Mifan Mamas America. These children need your support.

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE AND DO SUPPORT US MONTH AFTER MONTH WITH RICE, TOYS, CLOTHES AND CASH. WITHOUT YOUR HELP WE COULD NOT HELP THESE CHILDREN WITHOUT YOUR HELP WE COULD NOT FEED THESE CHILDREN.WE VISIT AND DONATE THE FOOD ON YOUR BEHALF.


WE CAN ONLY DO WHAT WE DO BECAUSE OF ALL OF YOU.


THANK YOU WE ALL APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT.
As with every trip it takes four weeks of planning and collecting from and with all our supporters. Each trip we are so grateful to you all for the things we can take to enrich these orphan’s lives.

We have been collecting toiletries from the Hilton Hotel every second week .The volunteers melt down the small bars of soaps and reset into larger bars. We dispense the small bottles of shampoo etc into larger 5 Litre bottles to give to the orphanage. These products are the ones that people half use in hotels and then discard. Thank you James for your support in this way it is a useful way to reduce waste, re-cycle and re-use.

People drop of bags of rice or give donations for us to purchase food on their behalf. Unwanted clothes and toys are given and need to be sorted.

Underwear was desperately needed by all of the children .Thank you so much Shinbi for raising the money for this very needy cause .We were able to purchase, sort, box and transport new underwear for the children of all ages.

Many boxes of stationery were donated this had already been sorted by Carmen so we were just able to load and go with this.

Lilian shops for books, powder milk, baby powder milk and anything else needed by the children. She does this every month.

Last thing is, we purchase treats for them crisps cakes a lollipop/sucker, an apple, orange and then we bag individually for them. They really love and look forward to this treat. This is funded by the volunteers and does not come out of the food money donated.

Margaret at River of Hearts always looks after the needs of these children with anything that has been donated to her charity that she feels is appropriate and needed by Lao Wang’s children. Margaret has helped there several times so knows their needs well.

Boxes of Underwear, Milk Powder, Stationery, soaps, shampoo, body wash and rice delivered Saturday.

We had a car load of things for the children and could fit any thing else except Tony,our driver and I in. This time we did not take the bus with us, as people are away on holiday so we did not have the numbers who wanted to go.We will always hire a bus if people want to visit. Bianca one of our volunteers, her husband Paul and their two girls joined us and traveled in their car.

We all left Shanghai at 8.30am on Saturday and started our journey to visit the children at Anhui, we were all so excited it was the first visit for Bianca and her family so they did not know what to expect. For Tony and I we had not been to see the children for two months and we were happy to be renewing friendships with the children, Lao Wang, his family and the staff, we had really missed them all.

The weather started off a bit rainy but when we made the first of many comfort stops the temperature got hotter and hotter. By the time we reached Anhui it was 38 but felt well over 40 .The countryside on the way was very green and we saw lots of rice fields and corn fields. The trees were in full green foliage, a far cry from the bare trees of winter, it was the countryside at its most beautiful, the children swimming in the steams along with the ducks, just trying to keep cool.

We arrived at the Orphanage at 4.00pm to a wonderful welcome from the children and staff they had been waiting for our arrival, lining the path outside the gates (we don’t know how long they had been there).

As our cars came to a stop, the children crowded around to see what goodies we had brought for them. We asked Lao Wang to have the tables brought outside and started to unpack the car and move the things we had brought onto the tables. We always like to give out the candies, fruit etc first as this is a real treat for them, just as our children like treats it is important that they also have these.

Then came the milk powder for the children and infants, the stationery, the toiletries ,the toys and then the boxes containing the underwear, this proved so popular especially among the teenage girls .One of Lao Wang’s daughters handed them out, this was something new for them.
The teachers took charge of the stationery while they were all excited by the hair and body products.

There was a lot of hugging and introductions to be made. Then off we went to visit with the children who are in bed. All of the rooms had fly netting on the windows and doors, to prevent mosquitoes and it worked. The beds now have the bamboo coverings and the children lying with the least amount of clothing to keep cool some rooms had fans but they are in desperate need of more ceiling or wall mounted fans. All the rooms looked very clean and tidy I am happy to report next visit we can take red envelopes for them. They appear to also need more strollers and pushchairs as a lot of the mummies had large carts used for moving goods with two large holes cut out of the top, into these holes they put the children to transport them about. We also need at least three wheel chairs that can convert into flat beds to get some of the children out of the rooms. Most of the rooms now have a washing machine although the severely mentally challenged children/adults at the top room don’t appear to have one.

I feel so sorry for these helpers (there are two men up there) and their charges as we tend to forget they are there when we first arrive we need to do much more to help this section of the orphanage. The volunteers will have a meeting and decide what can be done for them.

It was now 6.30 and we still had a 45 minute drive to our hotel, so we said goodbye and told Lao Wang we would return in the morning, after we had purchased rice and eggs to deliver to them, we had seen their supply and together estimated they need another ½ a ton.

Off we drove to FuYang to find our hotel. As hotels in the countryside go it was comfortable, not the cleanest but the beds and sheet were clean. After a quick freshen up we went for a walk on the streets in search of somewhere to eat dinner. Our choice was not good but it was the only place we found apart from KFC and MacD, but the drinks were cold. The place soon filled with lots of customers after our arrival, they obviously knew what to order, we just took pot-luck. Then it was back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep and ready for an early start. The morning breakfast high-light being a lovely home made chocolate cake, with candle for Bianca’s birthday.

By morning the temperature seemed to have cooled a little or maybe it was the time of day we got into the cars and headed one block to the street market. We first found the people selling eggs and Thomas Bianca’s driver got us a good deal. Then we made our way deeper into the market looking for the rice vendor. Here we were very happy to find not only rice but a rice and bean mix used for soup or porridge, we purchased 50KG, ½ ton rice, 30KG raw peanuts (protein) and 25Kg Soya beans (protein).This is a very good vendor with lots of produce, next time we will use them and possibly take LaoWang’s son-in-law with us to see what else they need. We still pledge with your help to do this every month.

Then it was back the then children, everyone was so happy to see us again and especially pleased with what we had purchased on your behalf (Thank you all).It was all quickly unloaded and off to the dining-room which they are using as a part storeroom for food as they are giving everyone as much extra space as possible in the heat.

There are 10 students from the Shanghai University staying out there for a week and teaching geography and history. They are sleeping in the PT room on the floor as there is an air-conditioner unit in there to keep them cool.

Bianca and I did an interview with them about the Mifan Mamas and what we do .They hope to spread the word of Lao Wang’s Orphans and get him more help. They were all so helpful it was wonderful having them as translators with the staff it helped with our understanding of many issues.

The children were wonderful they all just want to hold your hand to be hugged and to know you love them. In their summer clothes it emphasizes just how thin they are and how they need the food we help supply, WITHOUT YOUR HELP WE CAN’T DO THIS.

I know times are hard for all of us PLEASE CONTINUE TO HELP THESE CHILDREN.
We hadn’t prepared anything special to do this visit (but it was to hot anyway) Bianca’s girls played with the children and Tony exerted himself playing table tennis until he was extremely red in the face while the rest of us just held hands, hugged and carried babies, but it was enough to let them know we all care.

The dinner bell went and off they went for lunch, today it was bread and vegetables in a soup (to hot for much work in the kitchen) They need a freezer for the kitchen and a fridge to store food.

We had several productive meetings with Lao Wang and his staff which we will report on items when we have an implement plan for them.

All too soon it was time to say our goodbyes and assure them we will be back in a month.
It is always sad saying goodbye as they waved to us until we were out of sight.

Every visit is so special in its own way I hope you at sometime can see for yourselves.
This support really makes a difference in these children’s lives

Thank you from the Mifan Mama Volunteer group Lao Wang, and THE CHILDREN OF ANHUI.

June 14, 2009

Win Children's Mandarin Learning Picture Book

I will be doing most of my blogging from my website now. In recognition of a newly designed site, I am doing a giveaway. But you have to go to the new blog to enter!

Just go to www.kaybratt.com and find the blog page. There will be two lucky winners!